Luba Dvorak's new release "Hotel La Rence" is a set of artistic contradictions that are as complex as the artist himself. The work explores the pain of personal loss and the joy of small victories. It's an album that sees the ups and downs of life and recognizes that you don't always know which is which in a particular moment. The characters could be any of us at any give point in our lives but underlined with the ghost presence of Mr. Dvorak's bohemian troubadour lifestyle. The Czech born, Vancouver raised New York artist has brought us another chapter in the life of a modern day troubadour with Hotel La Rence. The follow up to his last release "Parts for Sale" was written in a beach apartment in Rockaway Beach New York where low income housing and project buildings are beach front property in a town that was once considered the most expensive and luxurious in the New York area. Having moved to New York in early 2004 with nothing more than a guitar and a suitcase Luba ended up in Rockaway Beach. A friend he made in a bar lent him his apartment to write new songs and get on his feet. "New York can be like trying to swim upstream without a life jacket, but if you tread water long enough eventually someone will throw you that life jacket" is how Luba describes his first six months in New York. Movement, change and music has been a part of Mr. Dvorak's life from a very early age, immigrating to Canada with his family at six and coming from a long line of family musicians which stems all the way back to world renowned composer Antonin Dvorak. "Hotel La Rence" is a mature album that follows the evolution of its artist. In it Luba has found a sound that is uniquely his. While the songs come from personal experience they contain a universal feeling everyone can connect with. At times it takes itself very seriously with songs like "Above it All" and "Napoleon's Land"..."tell the pallbearers we'll need a hand the waters are rising on Napoleon's Land", a song that deals with the devastation of New Orleans, while other times it seems as whimsical as a summers breeze, with easy tunes like Rockawayand No Reason. The album, like Luba's life is a journey. It celebrate the good times and finds solace when it all falls down. This is the album you will reach for when nothing else soothes you.